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墨書 Inktalez
I never expected that the guardianship entrusted to me by Xiao Guolin a few years ago would become a reality, and now she has grown into such a tall young woman. My initial excitement turned into bitterness and sorrow. Half a year ago, I received a letter from Xiao Guolin, informing me that he was going to enter the Underground Passage again, which filled me with a sense of foreboding. However, when I received the news of his misfortune, it truly pained my heart; going missing in the Underground Passage seemed like a matter of life and death.
First, I needed to understand the ins and outs of this situation. If Xiao Guolin had gone missing half a year ago, all I could do was burn incense and paper to honor his spirit. If it had happened recently, I could seek assistance from various Cultural Relics protection departments, urging them to make greater efforts to rescue the missing individuals. I could even volunteer to be their guide. With a heavy heart, I looked at Xiao Ting, waiting for her emotions to settle.
As I suspected, Xiao Ting was a strong girl; she quickly recovered from her sadness and agitation without shedding a single tear. She didn’t provide me with specific details but stared blankly at the sand table that occupied most of the room. After a while, she looked up in surprise and said, “This is a model of the Yadan Landform Group. How did you do this? My dad wouldn’t give up on you; it seems he was right.”
I was somewhat taken aback. It didn’t surprise me that she recognized this as the Yadan Landform; as a descendant of an Archaeology expert, she would naturally have absorbed some geological and archaeological knowledge. However, from her tone, I could tell she had instantly deduced the origins of this Yadan Landform Group, which was not something one could easily learn. The Yadan Landform is quite similar across different regions; even professional Archaeology team members would find it challenging to distinguish between two Yadan Landform Groups based solely on their shapes in a short time. This surprised me.
Noticing my expression of astonishment and confusion, Xiao Ting offered an unexpected explanation. “We are alumni; I study in the JD Archaeology Department as a junior.” She pointed at the sand table with her slender finger. “My dad has photos of this Yadan Landform Group on his computer—drone shots that I helped him compile. I can recognize it.”
In an instant, we became alumni, which surprised me a bit. However, I quickly shifted the topic to the critical issue at hand. “Let’s talk about Xiao Guolin’s situation—when did this happen? How many people are missing? What’s the progress on the rescue? The more specific you can be, the better; I will do my best to help you.” Here, I paused and looked into her eyes. “Xiao Guolin is my captain.”
Xiao Ting’s eyes reddened again as she softly replied, “I know; he mentioned you. He… asked me to find you.”
Then Xiao Ting briefly recounted what had happened. However, she didn’t know much either; the more I listened, the more I felt her coming to see me was unnecessary—at most, it would just be for us to burn some paper money together. Due to the lack of information, I concluded that I couldn’t provide any good advice for Xiao Ting.
From what she shared, I summarized four key points. First and foremost, and most crucially, Xiao Guolin and others went missing over three months ago. This incident has been kept highly confidential; after extensive searches yielded no results, only then were the families notified. Xiao Ting had only known about this for less than a month. What difference does it make if someone has been missing for three months compared to three years?
Second, the families of the missing individuals still do not know their specific location of disappearance. From Xiao Ting’s account, it became clear that Xiao Guolin hadn’t disclosed any information about our last encounter to her; thus she had no way of knowing about this current expedition either. The only thing she knew was limited to that panoramic photo of the Yadan Landform Group that she helped compile for her father. I understood this well; our last mission was highly classified—revealing any details could endanger others, especially relatives who might face disciplinary actions from our organization. Of course, I was an exception; organizational discipline no longer held any sway over me, and I wasn’t worried about Fatty spilling any secrets. However, this meant that even if I wanted to retrieve Xiao Guolin's remains, I wouldn’t know where to look.
Thirdly, the organization behind this expedition was quite complex. From the letter left by Xiao Guolin, I knew where their final destination was—a place deeply etched in my memory that I couldn’t forget. Our previous mission had been organized by the military; there was even a high-ranking officer overseeing operations with both Archaeology teams and Materials Scientists serving military purposes. After this incident occurred, Xiao Ting discovered that multiple departments were involved in handling matters—not in a subordinate relationship but rather as collaborative efforts among several entities.
Fourthly, there was chaos and inefficiency involved in all this. This conclusion stemmed from my months-long search for missing persons without success; Xiao Ting hadn’t mentioned specifics about the working status of the search team because she likely didn’t know either.
I analyzed the four points I summarized for Xiao Ting, comforting her to take care of herself during this difficult time. Unexpectedly, Xiao Ting said, "I want to find him."
I firmly disagreed. This matter was beyond my capabilities; he had been missing for three months already. Going would only mean retrieving Xiao Guolin's body. With the official news tightly sealed, there was no way to know where he had disappeared, not even a rough direction. I couldn't determine whether Xiao Guolin had entered the passage. If he had gone missing inside it, he was surely dead. The thought of re-entering the passage was unimaginable to me; I still couldn't fathom why Xiao Guolin would make such a decision.
Xiao Ting wore an incredulous smile, resolute as she said, "I came to ask you to help me solve a mystery; I won't drag you into this mess. I'll find my dad myself."
I insisted even more firmly, "I do not agree."
"I do," a voice came from the front of the shop.
Hearing the voice, I immediately knew who it was. I turned to see Fatty standing at the door, looking at us. Huang Hai was trailing behind him, looking up with an expression that suggested he was completely devoted to his boss. It seemed Fatty had called him back.
I shot Fatty a glare; wasn't he just complicating things for me?
Fatty ignored my look and strode over confidently. He was already taller than me and built like an ox; when he stood in front of us, he completely blocked out the light from outside.
He first looked at me and said, "Qiangzi, we need to help her. We can't turn a blind eye to Captain Xiao's uncertain fate."
My mind went blank for a moment. What was this about? Why were we helping her? What did he want from me? I knew Fatty's character too well; he never acted without a motive. I could believe he might be tempted by a woman's beauty, but risking his life for a stranger seemed far-fetched. He definitely had an agenda, but I couldn't figure out what it was just yet.
Fatty then turned to Xiao Ting and said, "I'm Song Gang. I know Professor Xiao; we will help you find him."
The steadiness and strength in Fatty's words, combined with his tall and robust physique, indeed gave off a sense of reliability. I saw Xiao Ting's eyes light up as she looked at Fatty.
Fatty, go ahead and dig your own grave. I thought to myself.
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